| PROGRAMS |
| Garden Based Learning |
Kindergarten-5th Grade
Last year’s trip to Hidden Villa
Collective Roots is excited to announce a new partnership with Girls to Women, an after-school program in East Palo Alto. Beginning October 20th, Collective Roots will lead a garden club twice a week, focusing on hands-on gardening and promoting environmental awareness. Additionally, third graders participating in the Garden Smarts Service Learning Project at the East Palo Alto Charter School (EPACS) will travel to Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge for an introduction to wetlands habitats. Led by Environmental Education Specialist, Tia Glagolev, students will participate in a wetlands restoration project. Once back at EPACS they will put their knowledge to use by planting their own Baylands garden in the spring.
Garden Clubbers at EPACS will journey to Hidden Villa Farm and Wilderness Preserve, a partner with Collective Roots. Hidden Villa is a nonprofit educational organization that uses its organic farm, wilderness, and community to teach and provide opportunities to learn about the environment and social justice. Hidden Villa stretches over 1600 acres of open space in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Garden Clubbers enjoy rich, experiential learning opportunities as a result of their continued relationship with Hidden Villa.
Middle and High School
The EPACS 8th graders have been busy planting cover crops to enrich the garden soil, harvesting herbs for drying and learning about the autumn equinox. On October 21st some of the 8th grade class attended the Brower Youth Awards Ceremony to learn about North American youth who have made positive environmental contributions to their communities.
On October 23rd the 8th graders will be visiting Hidden Villa on a field trip to learn about food justice, organic agriculture and the environment.
49ers Academy: Collaboration is underway with the 49ers Academy to begin work on a new school garden, and begin garden-based classes with Harmony Hayes’ 6th grade class and an afterschool program! The first step will be fencing in the new garden space and beginning garden planning and development.
Students from College Track and EPA Phoenix Academy
College Track and East Palo Alto Phoenix Academy: Wednesday’s afterschool program has been a big hit with the high school youth! After only three weeks, this group has established several new beds of radishes, lettuce, peas, onions, garlic and parsley! It is clear that they are a dedicated and hard working group, eager to learn, make connections in the garden, and try new things! |
| Environmental Action |
Distinguished Environmental Leaders Visit East Palo Alto and EPACS Garden
California Biodiversity Council’s “Children In Nature” conference-goers
A busload of attendees of the California Biodiversity Council, Children in Nature conference visited East Palo Alto on October 8th in order to view some of the environmental conditions and disparities that are impacting the community. The group toured the Collective Roots Garden (a Certified Wildlife Habitat) at East Palo Alto Charter School, viewed conditions in the adjacent baylands, and heard from local organizations such as Youth Community Service, Riekes Center, and Katie Kling, a teacher at East Palo Alto Charter School who has been leading her young students out into the Baylands to conduct environmental studies. Click here to read more about the visit and to learn about workshop participants. |
| Food System Change |
Image courtesy of Community Food Security Coalition |
In October, our new Food System Change Coordinator, David Kane, attended a conference called “Restoring Our Urban & Rural Communities with Healthy Food.” Held in Philadelphia and New Jersey, it was hosted jointly by the Community Food Security Coalition and the Food Trust. David attended sessions that focused on bringing local and healthy produce into corner stores, maximizing farmers’ market purchases under the new WIC benefits package, and creating strategies for Electronic Benefit Transfer usage at markets, as well as discussions about the food system and the environment. In addition, he and other conference attendees took a day-long trip into Philadelphia to visit the Food Trust’s projects in low-income neighborhoods, including some of the successful farmers’ markets they started and continue to coordinate. You can read David’s ongoing blog here. |
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| Youth Development |
San Mateo County Health Department’s Youth Take Action Summit
Collective Roots presented a healthy food choices workshop for 20 middle school students at the Youth Take Action Summit on October 1st. The workshop focused on the EPACS Salad Bar Event and how other schools can create similar healthy and tasty events to promote wise eating choices in their own schools. Two EPACS 8th graders attended the event, presented on their experience and helped the workshop run smoothly. In the near future, look for the new Collective Roots Salad Bar Event page on our website for advice on how to run a salad bar event at your school!
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| MONTHLY WORK DAY |
The next Collective Roots Garden Work Day will be Saturday, October 25th, from 8AM to 11 AM. Volunteers and Collective Roots staff will continue to work on the flowerbed, improving the herb garden, and plant more fall crops! This month the workday is on the same day as the EPACS Pancake Breakfast. We will slightly alter our workday schedule to make sure everyone can enjoy both great events! Instead of 8 AM – Noon, the workday this month will one hour shorter, ending at 11 AM. Click here for more information and directions. To sign up to be a team leader, call 650.324.2769 or email volunteer@collectiveroots.org. |
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| EPA COMMUNITY FARMER'S MARKET |
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Many of you are probably aware that Collective Roots helped lead a collaborative effort to establish the East Palo Alto Community Farmers’ Market this last June. The market has now served over 5,000 customers, providing a new source of fresh fruits and vegetables in a community long overdue for such a resource.
Important note: Starting on November 2nd, we’ll be changing to our fall/winter farmer’s market schedule. The market will remain open each Sunday with delicious and healthy greens, apples and other goods, but our hours will change to 2pm to 5pm. And as the weather cools and the leaves turn, our local farmers soon hope to offer apples, persimmons, mustard greens, broccoli, leafy greens, cauliflower, and all of our favorite early-fall healthy vegetables.
Market Info
The East Palo Alto Community Farmers' Market continues to bring local, fresh and healthy produce into our community each Sunday from 3-6pm at the St. Francis of Assisi Church (1425 Bay Road, just 2 blocks from University Drive). Do you have ideas for how we can improve the market, or do you want to get involved or volunteer? Please contact David Kane at david@collectiveroots.org. |
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| COMMUNITY EVENTS |
Collective Roots Appreciation Day: November 1st
You are invited to Appreciation Day on November 1st (11 AM-1 PM) in honor of your commitment our organization! This is a day to celebrate everyone who has helped support and further the Collective Roots mission! Come out to the garden at EPACS for a BBQ, live music, bike blender smoothies, and herbal crafts! Thank you to our volunteers and donors for all you do to support Collective Roots!
| When: |
Saturday, November 1st
11 AM—1 PM |
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| Where: |
Collective Roots Garden
1286 Runnymede St.
East Palo Alto, CA 94303 |
Please RSVP by October 27th to Eron at 650.324.2769 or eron@collectiveroots.org.
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| PAST EVENTS |
| Garden Workdays |
Menlo School students pose in our garden
The September Monthly Work Day was a big hit, with about 60 volunteers! Many EPAKS families attended, as well as several community volunteers. We began our new flowerbed by planting beautiful Euonymus shrubs and getting ready for planting bulbs.
On October 17th, 10 students came from the Menlo School in Atherton for a service workday. The students spent five hours in the garden learning about Collective Roots, companion planting, compost, organic gardening and garden maintenance. They mulched all the garden pathways, began work on our new flower bed by putting in compost, turning the soil and planting daffodil bulbs, and gave all our trees a much needed deep watering! At the end of the workday the students enjoyed self-powered bicycle blender smoothies. A great success!
On October 12th a group of 25 8th grade students, along with leader Rabbi Sarah Wolfe, from Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos came out to the Collective Roots garden for a service workday. The students helped spread an entire load of mulch, planted new herbs in the herb garden, and planted daffodil bulbs around the garden. Their good spirits and hard work were much appreciated as we prepare the garden for fall! |
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| WHAT'S GROWING: THE THREE SISTERS |
The Three Sisters Garden: popcorn, string beans, and summer squash |
Planting the Three Sisters, corn, beans and squash, is a Native American agricultural tradition and the quintessential example of companion planting. The three crops are inter-planted to assist each other in growing. Corn provides a sturdy trellis for the climbing beans and squash acts as a groundcover by spreading to inhibit weed growth. Beans are nitrogen fixers, meaning they convert nitrogen in the air into a form that is usable by plants, adding fertility to the soil. Our squash and string beans have happily arrived in bountiful quantities and we look forward to a healthy snack of popcorn later in the fall. |
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| FUNDRAISING |
Dagmar Beyerlein, Collective Roots Supporter |
This month we present the first in a series of interviews with the individuals and companies who donate their time, money, and other resources to Collective Roots. Click here to read an interview with Dagmar Beyerlein and learn about why she is committed to supporting our mission.
Collective Roots is always grateful for financial contributions that allow us to engage youth and communities in food system change through sustainable programs that impact public and environmental health. Collective Roots leverages every dollar of cash with approx. 40 cents of in-kind support with products and services. Click here to make a secure online donation. If you prefer to mail your donation, click here. If you would prefer to make your donation over the phone by credit card, or have additional questions, please do not hesitate to call us at 650.283.7530.
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NOTE: This newsletter employs hyperlinks that act as shortcuts to related documents or web pages. Click on the green underlined words in the articles above to find out more information.
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